The Bulls did it twice, with Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen leading the way. The Lakers accomplished it once, behind Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant. In the 42 seasons since the NBA-ABA merger, those are the only franchises to win three consecutive NBA Finals.
When the Warriors come together for training camp on Sept. 25, their goal is to become the third.
Here is a look at those players with guaranteed roster spots.
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NINTH IN A SERIES
Player: Jonas Jerebko
Position: Forward
Height/weight: 6-10, 231 pounds
College: None (Played two seasons in Sweden and two in Italy before becoming the second Swedish national player selected in the NBA Draft in 2009)
Age: 31
Salary: $2.18M (one-year contract at the veteran’s minimum, per Spotrac)
NBA 2K Player Rating: 75
2017-18 in review: After signing with Utah last summer, Jerebko became one of the team’s key reserves. A solid 3-point shooter for most of his career, the “stretch-4” actually enhanced his reputation as a long-range shooting specialist. His minutes, however, were curtailed in the postseason, where the Jazz was eliminated in the conference semifinals.
Key stats: 74 games (19 starts), averaging 5.8 points (46.6 percent FG, 41.4 percent 3p, 80.7 percent FT).
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Season highs: Points (17), 3-pointers (four), rebounds (eight, four times), assists (three), minutes (30).
2018-19 outlook: Jerebko represents the latest effort by the Warriors to discover legitimate floor-stretchers off the bench. They’ve traditionally been at or near the bottom of the league in 3-pointer made by reserves. Can he change that? With the Warriors placing a priority on limiting minutes for key starters, there will be an opportunity for Jerebko to crack the rotation. If he can shoot higher than 40 percent from beyond the arc, there is no reason to believe he won’t stay there.
